Physical events were pretty much impossible throughout 2020 - and the signs are that this will remain the case for at least a significant proportion of 2021. And for many B2B marketing teams, this creates a big problem.
In-person events have always been a key component of the B2B marketing playbook. And they’ve played an important role in the success of many organisations. In fact, 85% of business leaders agree that physical events are essential to their company’s success (Bizzabo, 2020).
This is because they’re one of the few opportunities for brands and salespeople to get face-to-face with their prospects (without a screen in between them). Which means they often represent the biggest chance to generate sales qualified leads (SQLs) directly.
But for the same reason, the lack of physical events in recent months has also led to the biggest holes in many marketing team’s lead generation goals.
Faced with this challenge, marketing teams and agencies adapted - turning to virtual events to replace their physical counterparts. This resulted in several excellent examples of how to run a virtual event well. Including Drift’s “RevGrowth” which attracted over 9000 visitors in two days. As well as some of our own client’s efforts - Turnkey's Virtual Risk Management Forum and Oosha’s Legal Tech Virtual Forum, for example.
But what we found was that while incredibly successful in their own right, virtual events struggled to entirely replicate the physical experience - including the ability to generate “on-the-spot” SQLs.
In this blog, we investigate why this is the case, why your expectations for virtual events should be different, and provide 5 simple tips for making your next event a success.
The reality of virtual reality
Countless event companies have responded to the pandemic by trying to replicate what would have been physical events like exhibitions, trade shows and conferences in a virtual environment. They allow ‘attendees’ to access all the speeches and information that would be on offer in a physical setting from the comfort of their own home.
However, there are at least three reasons why virtual events can’t, and shouldn’t, try to replicate the physical experience like-for-like.
- Virtual networking is crap: for attendees, visiting an event in person isn’t just about the keynote speakers, or the bricks-and-mortar of the trade stands. It’s also about networking and learning from your peers. For sponsors, this ability to connect directly is the main opportunity to start a conversation with their prospect, with the intention of generating an opportunity
When every attendee and sponsor is compartmentalised at their own workstations, these ad hoc opportunities completely disappear, or (often worse) are replaced by gimmicky, forced 'speed networking' chat rooms or “virtual booths”. - Fatigue: anyone who has spent substantial time participating in video calls and meetings over the last 12 months will know how mentally draining it can be. If the aim of your virtual event is to capture a full day’s attention from attendees (or more in some cases) - like you might in a physical environment - you’ll be battling to keep attendees engaged, however interesting the subject matter might be.
- Distractions: a person physically attending an event is immersed in what’s going on around them and it therefore has their undivided attention. Virtual attendees face constant diversions. Whether they be email notifications that flash up on their screens or the day-to-day disturbances we’ve all experienced while working from home. Whatever the case, these distractions are much easier to give into in a virtual environment.
The answer to these problems is approaching your event in a different way altogether. Not trying to replicate the physical experience and instead, realising that virtual events are different, and should be set up, promoted and delivered as such. So, how do you do that?
Here's 5 tips for running a successful virtual event
- Spread out the sessions
As we’ve just explored, the vast majority of us are Zoomed-out. The last thing anybody wants to do is sit in on a virtual conference for 8 hours. Spread out your sessions with at least 1 hour gaps between them - allowing attendees to jump in and out when they please, catching up on work and dealing with distractions in between. - Follow-up is key
Trying to engage attendees in meaningful discussions one-to-one while the event is underway is extremely difficult. Instead of trying to force these conversations, save them for after. Make sure you have a well thought through follow-up plan in place pre-event, identify your key prospects and try to engage with them in the follow-up - just like you would with a webinar for example. - Forget virtual booths
Avoid platforms with gimmicky virtual booths or trade show floors. The reason for this one is simple, people just don’t want to visit them. - Vary the content
One way you can tackle the fatigue issue is by varying the format of the sessions you deliver. Switch between panel-style interviews, smaller roundtable discussions, traditional keynote presentations and whatever other creative ideas you might come up with. Variety isn’t just the spice of life, it’s the key to virtual event success too. - Pick and mix
It’s unlikely that every session in your virtual event will appeal to all attendees. Giving your registrants the ability to choose what they want to engage with and what they don’t will make them much more likely to commit their time.
Ready to setup your own virtual event? Talk to the team at ROMI Associates and learn how we've helped other businesses create engaging and effective virtual event experiences
